Flow Freely

A fond childhood memory is being with my grandfather (Pop) when he pulled his old green Plymouth off the road where a natural spring of water was pouring out from the side of a hill. I'd never seen such a thing! We both took a small sip of that cool fresh water. Perhaps you recall Jesus' intentional journey through Samaria when He encountered a woman at a local well; He then said to her, "Give Me a drink" (John 4:7). During their conversation, Jesus said to the woman: "Whoever drinks of the water that I will give him will never be thirsty again. The water that I will give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life." (John 4:13-14 ESV). How sad so often in our spiritual lives we experience times of spiritual dryness and stagnation. Be certain of this: the problem is never with The Source of that promised "spring of water." Later in John 7:38, Jesus said: "Out of his heart will flow rivers of living water." The calling for all those who have believed - the redeemed, born-again, saved - is to be like that fresh water stream pouring out of the hillside - ever flowing, refreshing to those whom God sends into our days. I propose we are not called to let the love of Christ just trickle but to gush-forth with vibrant energy and life generously supplied by The Source - as Jesus is at work within us. Many of us live in rural areas where the water must be pumped out of the ground (thank God for those pumps!) The "living water" given to those in Christ Jesus does not depend on a pump; rather, His flow in and through us will be unhindered, unobstructed - yes, Christ will ... flow freely.

Mighty River

Have you ever noticed how a river widens and narrows, sometimes disappearing only to reappear yet always steadily flowing? In John 7:38 (NASB), Jesus said: "He who believes in Me, as the Scripture said, ‘From his innermost being will flow rivers of living water.'" How easy it is to believe that the days-of-our-lives and the flow of our lives are of our own making. Then something unexpectedly and unforeseen happens that shakes us from such foolish thoughts! The root of such a foolish view of our lives is forgetting The Source of the "rivers of living water" - Jesus Christ. Oswald Chambers writes, "We have nothing to do with the outflow" ... it is the work of God, that you believe in Him Whom He has sent" (John 6:29 NASB). That "victoriously persistent" river overcomes barriers, twisting and turning around things that threaten to hinder and destroy its flow. This is Christ at-work in us: He strengthens and sustains and empowers us in and through all days-of-our-lives, magnifying Himself in us into a world of darkness in need of The Great Light. The one question is ever before us: as those who "believe" in Jesus, are we focused and abiding in The Source of the Living Water within us? He is the eternal and all-powerful ... Mighty River.

Health Update

Thank you, Morning with Beverly readers, for your patience as I am on-the-mend
from a [relatively urgent] heart catheterization (Monday 08/31) where four blockages
were found and opened with stents. I am very grateful that for the last several
months I've been in the gracious care and keeping of The Father. I am home,
doing well and recovering nicely. Stay in The Word and
let The Word stay in you. Miles of Smiles, Beverly  

Blog Break

Hello, my dear MWB FriendsAt
At present, I'm home recovering from a medical procedure
In His gracious and sovereign care, I am doing very well
MWB should resume Monday 09-07
Stay in The Word!
Miles of Smiles, Beverly

Right Reason

Why we do-what-we-do is worthy of our thoughts! The reasons we do-what-we-do may include ... we've always done it ... we're fully capable of doing it ... no one else will do it. The motivation of of doing something simply because you love doing it often gets muddled by other reasons. John 3:16 tells us " “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life." This familiar verse describes an action motivated by nothing other than ... love. Love is highly motivational - that is, as long as the love doesn't get lost in the act of doing-what-we-do. Lamentations affirm the "steadfast love of the LORD never ceases ... His mercies never come to an end" (3:22 ESV). Never ceasing love and unending mercies will go a long way with us as we do-what-we-do in faithfully imitating Jesus! Time, energy and resources of doing-what-we-do often frustrate us to the point we ... lose the love! There's a short and to-the-point verse that should be at the center of all we do as followers of Christ: "Let all that you do be done in love." (1 Corinthians 16:14 ESV). God's greatest act of love was done because of love! As we abide in Him, we'll never be lacking in genuine motivational love. God's love is always be the perfect measure of doing-what-we-do for the right reason. And, love is always the ... right reason.